Eton Manor Boys' Club
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| Motto | Up the Manor |
|---|---|
| Established | 1909 |
| Closed | 1967 |
| Type | Boys club |
| Founder | Gerald V Wellesley |
| Location |
London E20 2ST England Coordinates: 51°33′14″N 0°00′54″W / 51.554°N 0.015°W |
| Gender | Boys |
| Ages | 14–16 |
| Publication | Chinwag |
Eton Manor Boys' Club was a boys sports club in London, England.
Eton Manor Boys' Club takes its name from Eton College, which from the 1880s had run a Christian Mission to raise living standards in the Hackney Wick area of the East End of London and the Manor Farm bought in 1912 to build a new sporting clubhouse. The Mission Church, St Mary of Eton, is still the Parish Church, but combined with the bombed St Augustine after the Second World War. It is now called St Mary of Eton with St Augustine. In 1973 the connections with Eton College were severed.
In 1909 four Old Etonian philanthropists founded Eton Manor Boys' Club to provide sporting facilities separate from the Eton Christian Mission. They were Gerald V. Wellesley, Arthur Villiers, the second son of Victor Child Villiers, 7th Earl of Jersey; Edward Cadogan, the sixth son of George Cadogan, 5th Earl Cadogan and Alfred Wagg of the City of London Wagg Banking Family. Gerald Wellesley passed on the leadership of the club to Arthur Villiers after the Great War; Villiers remained the primary guiding force behind the club until its closure. He lived at Eton Manor Boys' Club from 1913 until his death in 1969.
The club only accepted boys who had been previous members of the Eton Mission Boys’ Club. Additionally, the club's rules also stated that only boys between the ages of 13 and 16 could join, any boys past the age of 16 weren't allowed to join. The club also restricted boys from interacting with girls.
The club's coaches included well-known sportsmen including Douglas Jardine and Alf Ramsey. Boys who passed the age of 18 were able to join the "Old Boys" club.
In 1920 an old rubbish tip site on the eastern end of Hackney Marshes was converted into the Club's new sports ground, it became well known as The Wilderness. Facilities included nine football pitches, two rugby pitches, cricket pitches, six tennis courts, a bowling green, a squash court and a running track.
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